Starting the energy revolution ourselves: 100 % green electricity since 2009

Electricity is still generated using fossil fuels in most regions of the world. And also in Germany: who would have known that over half of the electricity generated in Germany still comes from brown coal, black coal and natural gas?

In addition, 13 % is nuclear power - despite Chernobyl and Fukushima and the unresolved disposal of nuclear waste ...

So it's all the more important that we as a company make our contribution to the energy revolution!

Since mid-2009, we have used only electricity from renewable sources.

VAUDE operates several large photovoltaic installations on company roofs. These produce more than half a million kilowatt hours of solar power annually – enough for about 160 households (assuming an average electricity consumption per household of 3,500 kWh per year).

In 2017 the VAUDE solar installations covered an equivalent of 78 % of our electricity needs.

Since mid-2014, we have been using a part of our own solar power at VAUDE ourselves, whenever the sun shines while the machines are running. In 2017 we were able to cover 27 % of our electricity consumption with our own solar energy. When the sun produces more electricity than we need, it gets fed into the German power grid, in accordance with the Renewable Energy Law (EEG). When our own solar power is insufficient, we purchase green electricity from Lichtblick.

The good news: our total electricity consumption has once again fallen. After years of renovation work and the construction of the new factory, our energy management system is now taking effect: growth and investments despite falling electricity consumption. This is also reflected in lower electricity consumption per employee and per ton of product produced at the site.

Why doesn’t the graph for 2017 contain a value for electricity consumption in the Manufaktur? This is due to the fact that in 2015 and 2016, our factory had to operate in a rented hall after a fire and electricity consumption was recorded separately. In the previous years, we hadn’t had a separate electric meter for our production facility. In 2017, we introduced new software for recording electricity consumption so that from 2018 onward, we will finally be able to measure electricity consumption separately at our headquarters in Tettnang-Obereisenbach.

We only calculated values for "Electricity consumption per metric ton of products produced at the site" in the years 2015 and 2016. During these years the factory was housed in a rented hall due to the fire. From 2018 onward we will also be able to report measured values again in the new building.

Our largest power consumers are most likely the IT server room, the production machines in our Manufaktur, the kitchen and the conveyor technology in logistics. Most likely? That’s right: We don’t know for certain, as we didn’t previously have separate electricity meters. With the new measurement technology, we are now recording electrical use in each building separately. As of 2018, we will finally know our biggest electricity consumers by name and we will be able to implement even more targeted energy-saving measures.

There are ways to reduce power consumption in our offices as well. To ensure that the equipment we use is as low-power as possible, we have developed VAUDE guidelines for the purchase of office supplies: office equipment should bear either the Blauen Engel or the EU eco-label (Euro-Flower). Energy Star is considered a minimum requirement.